Kira stepped out of the mansion's front door, freshly settled back into her former bedroom in the main mansion.
Returning to her former bedroom felt surreal. The room was exactly the same, yet everything in her life had completely changed.
She found Derek already waiting for her on the terrace, looking dapper, dressed in a dark suit that fit him like it had been sewn onto him, his hair neatly combed for once instead of raked through by anxious fingers.
He looked, in fact, like a man who had made an effort. A considerable one.
He turned when he heard her, and without a word, he stretched out his hand toward her, palm open.
Kira looked at that hand for a moment. Then she placed hers into it.
"Ready?" he asked.
Kira drew in a deep breath and nodded.
